''Life After Death'' is the ninth studio album by American Christian singer

TobyMac Kevin Michael McKeehan (born October 22, 1964), better known by his stage name TobyMac (styled tobyMac), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. His road band is known as Diverse City. Widely regarded as one of the most ...

, released on August 19, 2022, on

ForeFront Records ForeFront Records is a contemporary Christian music and Christian rock record label founded in 1987 by Dan R. Brock, Eddie DeGarmo, Dana Key, and Ron W. Griffin. It was purchased by EMI in 1996 from Dan R. Brock and Eddie DeGarmo, and is a divis ...

. It is his sixth album to top the ''

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Christian Albums Top Christian Albums is a weekly chart published in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the best-performing Christian albums in the United States. Like the ''Billboard'' 200, the data is compiled by Nielsen Soundscan based on each album's weekly ...

chart. The album's third single, " Help Is On the Way (Maybe Midnight)", peaked at No. 3 on the

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chart.

Background

TobyMac claimed that this was his most emotional album that he ever recorded. In October 2019, his eldest son Truett died after an accidental drug overdose. TobyMac said, "I immediately went to write, because that's what I know to do when I'm in so much pain. You go to

rite Rite may refer to: Religion * Ritual, an established ceremonious act * Rite (Christianity), sacred rituals in the Christian religion * Ritual family, Christian liturgical traditions; often also called ''liturgical rites'' * Catholic particular ch ...

what you know, what you love and what brings you peace. I immediately started writing – and I wrote '21 Years'. Then I wrote a song called 'Faithfully', and I wrote 'Everything About You' in the first few months after Truett passed."

Singles

"21 Years" was released on January 10, 2020, and is about TobyMac's son Truett Foster, who died a couple months prior, at the age of 21. The song peaked at No. 3 on the US Hot Christian Songs Chart. "I'm Sorry (A Lament)" was released on October 2, 2020. The song peaked at No. 25 on the US Hot Christian Songs Chart. " Help Is On the Way (Maybe Midnight)" was released on February 19, 2021. The song peaked at No. 3 on the US Hot Christian Songs Chart. "

Promised Land In the Abrahamic religions, the "Promised Land" ( ) refers to a swath of territory in the Levant that was bestowed upon Abraham and his descendants by God in Abrahamic religions, God. In the context of the Bible, these descendants are originally ...

" was released on September 17, 2021. The song peaked at No. 9 on the US Hot Christian Songs Chart. The song featured pop rock artist

Sheryl Crow Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and actress. She is noted for her Optimism, optimistic and Idealism, idealistic subject matter, and incorporation of genres including Rock music, rock, Po ...

on the OG Collab version. "The Goodness" was released on June 2, 2022. The song featured new artist

Blessing Offor Blessing Offor is a Nigerian-born American Gospel music, gospel and contemporary Christian music singer and songwriter. Early life and career Offor was born blind in one eye and with limited vision in the other due to congenital glaucoma. He ...

, and peaked at No. 1 on the US Hot Christian Songs Chart. This song was then performed at the

53rd GMA Dove Awards The 53rd Annual GMA Dove Awards presentation ceremony was held on Tuesday, October 18, 2022, at the Allen Arena located in Nashville, Tennessee. The ceremony recognized the accomplishments of musicians and other figures within the Christian mu ...

. "Cornerstone" was released on February 17, 2023. The song features CCM artist Zach Williams. "Faithfully" was released on September 29, 2023.

Critical reception

''Life After Death'' received mostly positive ratings from critics. Jesus Freak Hideout said of the album, "With a lyrical cohesion and an almost theatrical community feel throughout, Life After Death is a tough album (if you understand the sad context of it) that nevertheless gives hope...is well worth your time, and shows that in Christ, believers 'do not weep as those who have no hope.' Tragedy is not the end of the story." Giving the album a perfect 5, 365 Days of Inspiring Media said that the album was “very powerful, heartfelt, compelling, and challenging, while also laced in the joyfulness colliding with lament and sorrow that comes after a death of a loved one. It's knowing the promise of God while still reconciling how it looks like, this side of eternity. And that is what is seen all through Toby's album, and it's been a blast to listen to it."

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

's Marcy Donelson rated the album 4 out of 5, stating that " obyMac'seventual ninth album, Life After Death, finds the genre-blurring Christian artist navigating the aftermath f his son's deathalongside a slew of guests with a poignant mix of warm appreciations and invigorated motivational song." JubileeCast gave 4 out of 5 and said, "Though not perfect, the album does have many powerful moments. Most importantly, this is an honest set of songs. TobyMac doesn't give us recycled answers to the problem of suffering. Rather, using the space of 15 songs, he works with us through these issues. Reflective of life, there are some downers as well as some sparks of joy and hope." New Release Today's Average NRTeam rating was 2 out of 5.

Accolades

Commercial performance

The album peaked at No. 34 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 and No. 1 on the

Top Christian Albums Top Christian Albums is a weekly chart published in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the best-performing Christian albums in the United States. Like the ''Billboard'' 200, the data is compiled by Nielsen Soundscan based on each album's weekly ...

chart with 16,000

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Track listing

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes. *

— songwriting, vocals, producer * Bryan Fowler — producer on tracks 2, 6, 7, 9, 11, & 13, engineering, guitar, bass, background vocals on tracks 2, 6, 7, 9, & 11 * Dave Lubben — producer on tracks 10, 12 & 15, percussion, guitar, engineering, keyboards, strings, acoustic guitar, background vocals on tracks 10 & 12 * Jon Reddick — producer on track 4, guest vocals on track 4, background vocals on tracks 1, 4 & 5, keyboards * Micah Kuiper — producer on tracks 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, & 11, engineering, programming, guitar, bass, keyboards, drums, background vocals on tracks 1, 7, 9, & 11 * Tommee Profitt — producer on track 14, instrumentation * Kyle Williams — producer on tracks 2, 6, & 8, background vocals on tracks 2, 6 & 8, guitar * Cole Walowac — producer on track 7 * Serban Ghenea — mixing * Nick Rad — mixing * Bob Boyd — mastering * Doug Sarrett — mastering, engineering * Chris Gehringer — mastering * Reske — co-producer on track 7 * Zach Williams — guest vocals on track 9 * Blessing Offor — guest vocals on track 2, background vocals on track 4 * Gabe Real — guest vocals on track 15, background vocals on tracks 1, 2, 4 & 5 * Terrian — guest vocals on tracks 10 & 15 * Anike — guest vocals on track 10 * Marlee McKeehan — guest vocals on track 6 *

Tauren Wells Tauren Gabriel Wells (born April 7, 1986) is an American Contemporary Christian music singer and pastor from Houston, Texas. Wells was the frontman of former Christian band Royal Tailor. After the group's disbandment in 2015, he released ''Unde ...

— guest vocals on track 3 *

Sarah Reeves Sarah Elizabeth Reeves (born April 29, 1989) is an American musician and singer who primarily plays a Christian pop and worship style of music. She has released five extended plays and three studio albums (two of which are independently release ...

— guest vocals on track 7 *

— guest vocals on track 5 *

Michael Tait Michael DeWayne Tait (born May 18, 1966) is an American contemporary Christian music artist. Tait met Toby McKeehan in 1984 when he was in high school. Both Tait and McKeehan and Michael met Kevin Max while attending Liberty University in the ...

— guest vocals on track 12 *

Kevin Max Kevin Max Smith (born August 17, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, and poet. He is best known for being a member of the Christian pop group dc Talk. As a solo artist following the band going on hiatus, he has recorded 12 full-length st ...

— guest vocals on track 12 *

Cory Asbury Cory Hunter Asbury (born October 15, 1985) is an American Christian musician, worship pastor, songwriter, and former member of the Bethel Music collective. Starting as an intern with the International House of Prayer in Kansas City, Missouri, in ...

— guest vocals on track 11 * Lydi Lynn — piano, background vocals on track 10 * Tony Lucido — bass * Sterloid — drums * Terence F. Clark — drums * Aaron Sterling — drums * Paul Mabury — drums * Tim Rosenau — guitar * Scott Mills — guitar * Tyler Summers — baritone saxophone, tenor saxophone * Jeff Bailey — trumpet * Keith Everette Smith — trumpet, string arrangement, horn arrangement, brass arrangement * Steve Patrick — trumpet * Barry Green — trombone * Bob McChesney — trombone * Raymond Mason — trombone * Anna Spina — French horn * Jennifer Kummer — French horn * David Gerald Sutton — strings * Betsy Lamb — viola * Kristin Wilkinson — viola * Carolyn Bailey — violin * David Angell — violin * David Davidson — violin * Janet Darnall — violin * Jenny Bifano — violin * Karen Winklemann — violin * Anthony LaMarchina — cello * Sari Reist — cello * Janice Gaines — background vocals on track 4 * Andrew Thompson — background vocals on track 5 * Tasha Smith — background vocals on track 5 * Debi Selby — choir on track 14 * Emoni Wilkins — background vocals on track 5, choir on track 14 * Jason Eskridge — choir on track 14 * Moiba Mustapha — choir on track 14 * Nickie Conley — choir on track 14 * Travis Cottrell — choir on track 14 * Ryan Stevenson — background vocals on track 2 * Michael Cochren — background vocals on track 1

Background

Singles

Critical reception

Accolades

Commercial performance

Track listing

Personnel

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References